China has taken “special measures” to facilitate the import of quality fresh Cambodian mangoes and expects 100,000 tonnes of the fruit to reach Chinese shores this year, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Hua Chunying told a regular press conference on May 14.
The remark comes a week after Cambodia shipped around 100 tonnes of fresh Keo Romiet mangoes to China, in the Kingdom’s inaugural direct export of the fruit to the East Asian market.
Hua added: “Relevant departments overcame challenges posed by Covid-19 and managed to pull through this efficient and practical trade cooperation in agricultural products through the innovative means of quarantine inspection through videoconference.”
“The cooperation not only helps meet the demands of Chinese consumers by adding choices to the fruit market, but also helps Cambodian farmers to generate more incomes and tide over the challenging times amid Covid-19,” she claimed.
“The news received much attention and warm welcome from all sectors in Cambodia. The cooperation is so much more than just the mango fruit. It embodies the brotherly friendship between our two countries.
“As Cambodia’s iron-clad friend sharing weal and woe, China will work with Cambodia to continuously deepen practical cooperation in various fields, including agricultural produce, so as to bring more tangible benefits to both peoples,” Hua said said.
The official export came after the Chinese Customs Administration on April 26 officially approved a list of 37 mango plantations and five packaging factories to export fresh mangoes to China.
Speaking at the ceremony, Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Veng Sakhon voiced hope that the export volume of fresh mangoes would continue to increase from year to year.
“Sanitary and phytosanitary measures have been playing an indispensable role as a bridge for agricultural products to foreign markets,” he said.
Cambodia exported 142,556 tonnes of fresh mangoes in the first four months of 2021, up 239.13 per cent from the same period last year, agriculture ministry statistics show.
As of 2020, mangoes are grown on 130,000ha in the Kingdom, of which 91,104ha (70.08 per cent) are harvested. Mango production reaches an average of more than 1.38 million tonnes per season.
